Do you know anything about Augustine Borrell's death? Please email the Herald Newsdesk Or call the police on 0508 426 458
KEY POINTS:
Police are investigating comments on popular website Bebo that implicate a young man in the death of Auckland Grammar student Augustine Borrell.
Pages from a young man's Bebo profile are full of comments claiming he is involved in the 17-year-old's murder on Saturday night.
"I HERD FORM SO MANY PPLSKEES THAT IS WAS U...??" one posting says.
Other comments posted are more direct with postings on the man's bebo site saying "...ull be paying for wat uv dun .. ur guna get locked up for a looooong time faggot" and "bro du u think ur tha man or some shit u steal ma m8s fones and u stab some1 g own up grow some balls u aint shit bro".
Police spokeswoman Noreen Hegarty said police were aware of the "information and speculation" posted on Bebo and were "looking very closely" at it.
Police have also revealed they now have two "persons" of interest although Ms Hegarty was unable to confirm if one of those suspects was the person being implicated on Bebo.
On one posting, the young man replies to someone who asks if he was involved.
He replies: "hey there..
i am real sory 4 tha incident ov augustine, an want u 2 know i had no intensions wat so ever 2 do so, an im not that kind of person an kuld neva du that 2 sum1 especialy 2 sumwun i dont knw an if u havnt heard iv handed maself in.and i am real real sorry, i didnt know wat hapend that nite. R.I.P augustine"
Detectives say they believe a "wanna-be" street gang might be behind the killing.
Augustine Borrell was stabbed outside a party in the Auckland suburb of Herne Bay on Saturday night.
Detectives say Augustine was an innocent bystander when he was stabbed after the party was closed down because of the gatecrashers.
He is the 11th victim of the youth and street gang violence that has plagued Auckland for two years.
The murder investigation was being assisted by specialist youth aid officers from the western area of the city, where street gangs are active. Hotspots are in Mt Roskill, Avondale and Wesley.
At the same time as police are investigating the Bebo comments, hundreds of messages of condolences have also been posted on the site.
Borrell's siblings' sites have received around 200 messages, all relating to his death. Many offer help and comfort, but others say the authors are struggling to express their grief. Mr Borrell's own page is locked to those outside the approved group of friends.
Meanwhile, police are looking for two young men caught on the surveillance cameras at the BP petrol station near the party.
Auckland police spokeswoman Noreen Hegarty said at this point police do not believe the two men attended the party.
She said the two men or anyone who knows them should contact the Auckland police on 0508 426 458.
The seventeen year-old had a wide network of friends, some of which have posted comments on the teen networking site Bebo.
- Additional reporting NEWSTALKZB and Edward Gay
